Lawmakers begin filing bills for 2015 sessionLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Arkansas lawmakers moved to clarify new ethics rules contained in a constitutional amendment and to make a renewed attempt at writing court rules Monday as they began filing legislation for next year's session. The two pieces of legislation filed by late Monday were "shell bills" - meaning they didn't include specific proposals - but indicated two of the major issues facing lawmakers when they convene for the session o...

Sheriff: Arkansas felon sells gun to officerNEWPORT, Ark. (AP) - Arkansas authorities have arrested a felon who they say was selling guns on Facebook. KAIT-TV reports (http://bit.ly/1xg8Lan ) Jackson County deputies arrested the man on a firearms possession charge. Jackson County Sheriff's Cpl. Justin Collom says an undercover officer bought a 12-gauge shotgun from the man last week. He says the man had been released on bond for a separate firearms possession charge before he made the s...

Judge partially dissolves NLR consent decreeLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - A judge has partially lifted a consent decree issued more than 30 years ago for North Little Rock. The decree resolved allegations by the federal justice department that the central Arkansas city regularly engaged in racial and gender discrimination in its hiring, recruiting, assigning and promoting practices, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (http://bit.ly/1wSWZio ) reported. It was first issued in 1983 but was later mod...

Pavement work means lane closures on US Highway 67LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - State construction officials say pavement work will require daytime lane closures this week on U.S. Highway 67 in Pulaski and Lonoke counties. The Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department says the lane closures will be Thursday and Friday between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., weather permitting. Traffic will be controlled using cones and warning signs. Crews will perform pavement testing on the northbound and so...

Arkansas prosecutors rest in machete attack caseFORT SMITH, Ark. (AP) - Prosecutors have rested their case in the double capital-murder trial in Sebastian County involving a man who charged with killing two men with a machete. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports (http://bit.ly/1vmDFhS) that prosecutors rested Tuesday in the murder trial of Gregory Aaron Kinsey. The 21-year-old Kinsey is charged with killing 39-year-old Brandon Prince and 32-year-old Nathan Young in Fort Smith in June 2013...

Hot Springs woman gets 30 years for child pornHOT SPRINGS, Ark. (AP) - A 34-year-old Hot Springs woman has been sentenced to 30 years in prison after she pleaded guilty to child pornography, sexual assault and bestiality charges. Prosecutors said Amanda Desaray Hartle was sentenced Tuesday and will also be required to register as a sex offender. Hartle pleaded guilty to five counts of distributing, possessing or viewing matter depicting sexually explicit conduct involving a child, one cou...

Arkansas marriage ban case heading to 2 courtsLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Arkansas' highest court and a federal judge will hear arguments this week over the state's ban on same-sex marriage, a decade after voters approved a constitutional amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman. Attorneys for the state and a group of gay couples are scheduled to appear before the Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday morning, as justices weigh whether to uphold a Pulaski County judge's May ruli...

Early season storm drops snow on north ArkansasLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - An early season snowstorm dropped up to five inches of snow in parts of north Arkansas and left roads slick. The National Weather Service in Little Rock said Monday that five inches of snow was recorded near Bruno in Marion County after the Sunday storm while 3½ inches accumulated in Cleburne County and three inches in both Izard and Conway counties. Little Rock received just a trace snow. Schools in north-central and ...

Grant money expected soon for Pine Bluff programLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - State officials say they will likely receive grant money before the year ends for a program that will put soon-to-be-paroled inmates to work in Pine Bluff. About 40 inmates will help demolish condemned houses as part of the Pine Bluff Housing and Community Re-invigoration Program, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (http://bit.ly/1zvXx0G ) reported. The Arkansas Department of Community Correction will oversee the two-year p...

Mid-South Community College considers mergerWEST MEMPHIS, Ark. (AP) - The Board of Trustees at Mid-South Community College in West Memphis has agreed to discuss a possible merger with the Arkansas State University System. Board Chair Mary Meux Toney said a merger could help the college do more for the city, county and region. College President Glen Fenter said ASU would benefit from Mid-South's workforce training programs and the college would benefit from Arkansas State's support for f...

Crystal Bridges Museum president to resignBENTONVILLE, Ark. (AP) - The president of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville is resigning, although he will remain as a member of the museum's board of directors. The museum announced Monday that Don Bacigalupi will step down as president on Jan. 14 to accept an appointment as the Founding President for the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art that is to be built in Chicago. Bacigalupi was named executive director of Crystal Bridge...

Report: Arkansas ranks high for child homelessnessLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - A report says Arkansas ranks as one of the worst states overall in child homelessness. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (http://bit.ly/1qPH2r5 ) reports the study, called "America's Youngest Outcasts," was released Monday by the National Center on Family Homelessness. Arkansas placed 47th in the overall ranking that takes into account extent of and risk of child homelessness, child well-being and state policy and planning...

Federal agencies grant UALR academic distinctionLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Federal agencies have granted honors to programs at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. The National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security designated the school as a National Center of Academic Excellence in information assurance/cyber-defense education. Only 65 schools have received the distinction so far. The federal designation recognizes schools that promote research and produce experts tha...

Click It or Ticket this ThanksgivingLITTLE ROCK — Arkansas State Troopers are joining forces with other state and local law enforcement officers over the Thanksgiving holiday. The unified effort is directed toward seat belt law violators. The “Click It or Ticket” enforcement campaign during the holiday period begins Nov. 24 and continues through Nov. 30. “The Thanksgiving holiday is among the busiest of travel periods both in Arkansas and across the nation,” said Colonel Stan Wi...

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Arkansas State PoliceThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Bill Clinton says he's surprised by midterm loses LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Former President Bill Clinton says Democrats lacked a "national advertising campaign" in the recent midterm elections and was surprised that many Senate races were not closer. Clinton says in an interview with Politico that voters who were opposed to Democrats felt more strongly about the election than those who supported his party. He says many people couldn't hear what he called "a fairly coherent economic message." Clinto...

At Clinton center, the past and the future collide LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Bill Clinton always said presidential campaigns must be about the future, but Hillary Rodham Clinton's potential White House bid is bound to bring up the past. How the former secretary of state navigates her husband's triumphs and travails during the 1990s could figure prominently in a possible 2016 race for the presidency. In a touch of legacy shaping, Bill Clinton and his onetime White House advisers highlighted his record...

Man dies after being found shot in Little Rock LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Police in Little Rock say a man with an apparent gunshot wound who was found in a car outside a west Little Rock residence has died. A police report stated Richard Winston, 25, was found slumped inside the car by officers responding to reports of a shooting shortly after 6 a.m. Friday. Police say Winston died Friday afternoon at a local hospital where he was taken after being found with the apparent gunshot wound to his abdo...

Arkansas trots to No. 2 turkey-producing state KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Arkansas has trotted into second place among turkey-producing states after North Carolina's gobbler population fell sharply as U.S. turkey numbers hit a 28-year low. The National Agricultural Statistics Service reports Minnesota remained king of the roost in 2014 with an estimated 45 million birds, an increase of 1 million over 2013. Arkansas saw its turkey population rise from 28 million to 29 million in the same span,...

Hutchinson not keeping Tennille at economic agency LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas Gov.-elect Asa Hutchinson says he's not keeping the state's chief economic development official when he takes office next year. The incoming Republican governor on Friday said he had decided not to keep Grant Tennille as the Arkansas Economic Development Commission's director. Hutchinson, who defeated Democrat and fellow ex-congressman Mike Ross in the Nov. 4 election, said his transition steering committee is alrea...

Governor reaffirms intent to pardon son LITTLE ROCK (AP) — The office of Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe on Friday reaffirmed his decision to pardon his son in a felony marijuana case amid complaints that he is showing favoritism. Beebe, who leaves office in January because of term limits, said this week his next round of intended pardons, due in December, would include one for his son Kyle, who was convicted in 2003 of felony marijuana possession with intent to deliver. The state Parole B...